


we'll be there for you (with cats and cuddles)

by ruinsrebuilt



Series: gift works [1]
Category: Band of Brothers
Genre: Cats, Comfort, Couch Cuddles, Domestic Fluff, Fluff, Home Cooking, M/M, Married Couple, Movie Night, night in
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-25
Updated: 2017-06-25
Packaged: 2018-11-19 01:20:23
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,232
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11302788
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ruinsrebuilt/pseuds/ruinsrebuilt
Summary: The chaos before him froze, four sets of eyes swiveling in his direction. They stood there for a moment, still clutching their weapons, the pot on the stove nearly boiling over.“Uh, hi Gene!” Babe waved his spoon at him.“You’re home early,” Ralph smiled innocently, as if he hadn’t just been caught in of the most bizarre scenes of their entire marriage.





	we'll be there for you (with cats and cuddles)

**Author's Note:**

  * For [maddieaddam](https://archiveofourown.org/users/maddieaddam/gifts).



> written for my dear friend Maddie, who just needed a little fluff/comfort for her ot3. I hope you like it <3

Gene’d had the worst day. Not only had he just come off a double shift, he lost a patient just before he got off work. Granted, that patient had been a 91 year old man with a heart condition, but that didn’t matter, not to Gene. 

When he got home, he expected the apartment to be empty. Babe and Ralph had called earlier to let him know they were going out, and would try to be home by the time he got there. Gene had never known either of them to be on time, ever. 

He unlocked the door to their small apartment, was greeted by one of their cats, Éloise, who rubbed against his ankles and purred her hello. 

Gene looked down at her fondly as she weaved in between his legs. 

“Bonjour mon amour. And how are you tonight?”

Éloise purred in response, following behind him as he made his way to the kitchen. 

Since his husbands were out and probably had already eaten dinner, Gene figured he would just have a bowl of cereal and call it a night. He was much too exhausted, emotionally and physically, to cook anything of substance, although the doctor side of him told him that was exactly what he needed. 

As he neared the kitchen however, a familiar smell wafted down the hallway, and it was then he noticed every candle in the house had been lit.

He could hear the muted sounds of pots rattling and frustrated bickering coming from the kitchen doorway.

He glanced at Éloise. “Why didn’t you tell me they were home?” 

Éloise just looked at him silently with wide, innocent eyes. 

When he rounded the corner, the scene he found bordered on the comedic. Babe stood in the middle the kitchen, a wooden spoon dripping with something red clutched in his hand as he pointed it threatening towards Ralph, who stood on the opposite side of the kitchen brandishing a frying pan as a shield. At each of their feet was a cat, as if they had taken sides with their prospective masters. 

“Damnit, Ralph, she said 2 teaspoons of paprika not 2 tablespoons!” 

“It’s not my fault! I cannot be blamed for your terrible handwriting!” 

“How dare you insult my handwriting? My third grade teacher said is was marvelous!” 

Tired as he was, Gene couldn’t help but giggle. 

The chaos before him froze, four sets of eyes swiveling in his direction. They stood there for a moment, still clutching their weapons, the pot on the stove nearly boiling over. 

“Uh, hi Gene!” Babe waved his spoon at him. 

“You’re home early,” Ralph smiled innocently, as if he hadn’t just been caught in of the most bizarre scenes of their entire marriage.

“Hi, you two. Uh,” Gene glanced meaningfully at their makeshift weapons, “whatcha doing?” 

“Well, we heard you had ah, a bit of a rough night, so we thought we’d try to cheer you up with a night in.” 

Ralph nodded in agreement, “We knew you wouldn’t take care of yourself if we weren’t here to make you, so we decided to fix your favorite meal. Grandmére was very helpful in giving us her gumbo recipe, although _someone_ nearly messed up the whole thing with their sloppy handwriting.” 

He gave Babe the stink-eye, and Babe glared back at him. 

“I see. Well, it’s a good thing I arrived when I did. I will not stand for Grandmére’s recipe to be blasphemed in my own kitchen.” Gene smiled, albeit tiredly. He was headed for the stove when a chorus of objections stopped him in his tracks. 

“Oh no you don’t. We’ve got this under control. The whole point of us making dinner is so that you don’t have to. Ralph,” Babe jerked his head towards Gene, “please get our husband out of the kitchen.” 

Ralph nodded, dutifully grabbing Gene’s hand and pulling him from the kitchen, their trio of cats in tow. He retraced Gene’s steps through the house and into the living room where the concentration of candles was significantly higher, and deposited him firmly on the couch. 

Gene could only watch in mild amusement as Ralph put on one of his favorite records and grabbed a blanket from the trunk, laying it over his lap and fussing until the edges were tucked loosely around him. 

“There. Snug as a bug. Now, let’s get you some company.” 

He then proceeded to pick up each cat and place them firmly in Gene’s lap. 

“Pudge has been a little grumpy lately, I think he misses you. For the life of me I can’t figure out why my cat likes you better.” Ralph grumbled. “You haven’t been giving him treats on the sly have you? You know he’s on a diet.” 

Gene smiled guiltily. “Well…” 

“I knew it!”

“Sorry, honey.” 

Ralph preened at the pet name. “Well, I suppose you’re forgiven.” He leaned down to press a kiss to Gene’s forehead. “Alright, I’m gonna go make sure Babe isn’t setting the house on fire. Enjoy the music and the cuddles, there’s more where that came from.” He winked and waddled out of the room. 

Éloise was already dozing comfortably in his lap, while Pudge was spread out on the couch next to Gene, his fat stomach sticking up adorably. Larry, Babe’s cat, was nudging Gene’s hand, demanding another scratch behind the ears. 

Gene closed his eyes and let the soft cajun melodies wash over him. The record was one he had grown up listening to with his Grandma, and she had given it to him as a wedding gift. 

He must have dozed off because the next thing he knew he was being gently prodded awake, the cats surrounding him having been replaced by two smiling husbands. 

“Hey darlin. Time to get some food in you.” Babe handed him a steaming bowl of gumbo.

Gene leaned back into the couch cushions, enjoying the feeling of both of his husbands pressed firmly against his sides, and let himself relax again. 

The first spoonful of gumbo was pure heaven. If he didn’t know better Gene honestly might have thought that Grandmére herself had made it. He closed his eyes and let the flavor swirl in his mouth, enjoying the comforting feeling of familiarity that came with it. 

When he opened his eyes again he found Babe and Ralph staring at him anxiously. They cared so much about what he thought, wanting to make this night a perfect mix of love and comfort. The thought alone was enough to make him feel a little lighter. 

“Well? How’d we do?” Ralph bit his lip nervously. 

Gene smiled. “C'est la perfection.” 

They knew the word perfect when they heard it, their faces lighting up as they exchanged high fives. 

Once they had finished their gumbo and cleared the dishes, Babe put the movie in. Gene perked up as he heard the opening music to With Honors, an old 90’s movie that had always been his favorite, and pressed a grateful kiss to each of their hands. 

All of them propped their feet on the table, leaning their heads against each others, pressing kisses to foreheads, and hands, and shoulders every few minutes. 

Gene always felt safe with his husbands, but it was moments like this that made him feel protected from all the heartaches of the world. Here, they were content. Together, they were complete.


End file.
